Five Norwalkers up for appointment to Board of Ethics

NORWALK -- Common Council members will be asked Tuesday night to fill five seats on the city's Board of Ethics.

Following a number of term expirations, the seven-member board is down to two people.

The proposed three appointees and two reappointees will come forward under General Council Business led by council President Douglas E. Hempstead.

Under the city's codebook, appointments to the Board of Ethics require a supermajority vote.

Hempstead indicated that could pose a problem with 15 people on the council and some members likely absent Tuesday night.

"The council has to have 11 affirmative votes," said Hempstead, an at-large Republican. "And I haven't got any affirmation from the Democratic caucus, and we (Republicans) are short a couple members (Tuesday) night."

The council had postponed a vote for several meetings in order to secure resumes and reach an agreement.

Councilman Matthew T. Miklave, a District A Democrat, said he believes the appointees and reappointees will be approved.

"I think that the majority and minority parties have worked together," Miklave said. "They've put together a bipartisan panel of folks to go on the ethics board, and I expect they'll get the majority votes that they need.".

Up for appointment to the Board of Ethics are Democrat Eric Benitez, unaffiliated voter Michael Church and Republican Dale Ford. Republican Elizabeth M. Broncati and unaffiliated voter Louis M. Seeley are up for reappointment.

William F. Fitzgerald, Board of Ethics chairman, said politics and political affiliation are unimportant to the board. And while the board hasn't found any violations of the city's Code of Ethics since its formation four years ago, its members have met and conducted other business, according to Fitzgerald.

"From its inception we've met. We read the code together, so everyone could have an understanding of it. The only time we have not met is when we have not had a quorum," Fitzgerald said. "What we have done is put together an online a 'Citizens' Guide to Code of Ethics,' and there's a complaint form and explanation of how and where to bring a complaint. What we tried to do is make the process as friendly and open as possible."

The Board of Ethics was seated in 2009, two years after the Common Council approved a revised ethics code, which places gift limits at $50 and includes a whistle-blower clause.

The revised code also left the handling of possible ethics violations up to a seven-member, council-appointed board, rather than to a council subcommittee, as had been the case.

Under state statute, ethics investigations undertaken by the board must remain confidential unless the subject of the investigation chooses otherwise, or if the committee finds probable cause.

"We cannot disclose whether or not there have been complaints," said Robert F. Maslan, Jr., head of the city's law department. "But I can say the (board) has not made any findings of probable cause."